reetings unto the East Kingdom from Despotissa Margarita Kofinopoia. For the fourteenth time Artisans of the East gathered in the North to show the winter works of their hands and compete for the accolade of winning the Pentathlon. Forty entrants entered 89 individual items across 38 categories. Forty wildly appreciated judges reviewed many entries and wrote 120 scoring sheets with comments in the space of four hours. Our most prolific judge this year was Brynn nic Neachdain who covered 18 items over 5 separate categories. She was followed closely by Mistress Deonne von Achen, Master Henry MacQueen, and Mickel von Salm who both covered 12 items in six, three, and three categories respectively.

The winners for the individual categories were as follows -

• 1. Costuming, pre-1000 - Genevieve Cramwell - Green linen tunic hand stitched with linen thread
• 2. Costuming, 1000-1300 - NO ENTRIES
• 3. Costuming, 1300-1500 - Tatiana Daniilova - Italian Doublet
• 4. Costuming, 1500-End of Period - Single Entry - Renye Wurm - Gray leather doublet
• 5. Costuming for Combat - Eleanor Fitz Patrick - Red and Yellow ¾ Caparison (Equestrian Challenge Entry)
• 6. Accessories (no headwear) TIE - Anton Leflamme d'Saint Aubin - pair of fine silver, granulated, enameled ear ornaments
  Domenego Paladin Triestino - Bow Spectacle Frames
• 7. Headwear - Eleanor le Brun - 15th century henin
• 8. Counted Embroidery - Tatiana Daniilova - Blackwork after Jane Seymour
• 9. Non-counted Embroidery - Sarah Davies - Silk quilt
• 10. Beadwork - NO ENTRIES
• 11. Non-woven Fabric (sprang, knitting, felting, etc.) - Single Entry - Gillian Stace - Naalbinded Mittens
• 12. Weaving - Anastasia of the Oaks - Blue-green & white card woven wool belt
• 13. Narrow Work - Anastasia of the Oaks - Blue-green & white card woven wool belt
• 14. Spinning - NO ENTRIES
• 15. Dyeing - Sarah Davies - Silk quilt
• 16. Leatherwork - Eleanor FitzPatrick - Red leather horse bridle (Equestrian Challenge Entry)
• 17. Woodwork - Domenego Paladin Triestino - Bow Spectacle Frames
• 18. Metalwork - Tristen De Warrell - Opus interasile brass pieces 16th century (3 pins & 1 necklace)
• 19. Jewelry - Anton Leflamme d'Saint Aubin - - pair of fine silver, granulated, enameled ear ornaments
• 20. Drawing and Painting - Svea the Shortsighted - Portrait of Lady Guenevere in Style of Holbein
• 21. Sculpture and Carving - Eala Campbell - Isle of Lewis Chessmen in clay
• 22. Calligraphy - Edward MacGyver - Letter of invitation scroll
• 23. Illumination - Svea the Shortsighted - Scroll blank in the style of Luttrell Psalter
• 24. Heraldic Display - Eleanor Fitz Patrick - Red and yellow heraldic caparison (Equestrian Challenge Entry)
• 25. Cooking - Baroness Ardenia ARuadh - Simple bage cheese in several flavors and forms
• 26. Herbalism - Baroness Ardenia ARuadh - Herb-infused sugars
• 27. Period Science - Sarah Davies - Intarsia Seal Bag
• 28. Household Goods - Maxton Gunn - Suite of Savonarola chairs and stools
• 29. Miscellaneous - Anton Leflamme d'Saint Aubin - set of handmade steel chasing and repousse tools
• 30. Beers/Ales/Lagers - NO ENTRIES
• 31. Meads - Dorio of "Whispering" Oaks - Mead with a hint of strawberry
• 32. Wines - Kythe Szubielka - Maple Hard Cider
• 33. Cordials - Tiernan Shepard - Apricot Cardamom Cordial
• 34. Musical Performance (Period Style) - Leafy Greens & Mutton - "Hey Downe Downe"
• 35. Musical Performance (Filk) - Single Entry - Jean du Montaigne - Marching Song
• 36. Storytelling and Drama - Svea the Shortsighted - Tale from the Decameran
• 37. Dance - Mikel von Salm & Maxton Gunn - Dance "Contentezza d'Amore
• 38. Poetry - Performance - Single Entry - Baroness Ardenia ARuadh - "A Faire du Fromage
• 39. Other Performances - Single Entry - Jadwiga Zgjaczkowa - Academic lecture on sage

Written Categories (due 1 month before competition)

• 40. Musical Composition - NO ENTRIES
• 41. Research Papers (8 or more pages of text) - Svea the Shortsighted - "Relics and Reliquaries" a paper based on research done for a class presented at Pennsic
• 42. Research Reports (less than 8 pages of text) - Duncan Kerr - "On the Care and Keeping of Horses in Medieval Europe" (Equestrian Challenge Entry)
• 43. Prose - NO ENTRIES
• Poetry - written - Baroness Ardenia ARuadh - "A Faire du Fromage" a recipe poem in the 14-15th c style

Overall Pentathlon Winners (scores are on a 50 point scale)
1st Place - Svea the Shortsighted with an average of 43.22
2nd Place - Anton Leflamme d'Saint Aubin with an average of 42.4
3rd Place - Eleanor le Brun with an average of 40.88

King's Choice & Queen's Choice
My apologies, I do not have the names noted for King or Queen's choices although they were awarded beautiful scrolls.

Judges' Choice
Maxton Gunn - Suite of Savonarola chairs and stools

Entrants' Choice
Anton Leflamme d'Saint Aubin - fine silver, granulated, enameled ear ornaments; wood box; fine silver, hand raised goblet; set of hand made steel chasing and repousse tools

Populace Choice
1st Place - Eala Campbell - Isle of Lewis Chessmen in clay; Celtic Knot Illumination; Celtic Knot Etched bronze chalice
2nd Place - Anton Leflamme - fine silver, granulated, enameled ear ornaments; wood box; fine silver, hand raised goblet; set of hand made steel chasing and repousse tools
3rd Place - Tristan DeWarrell - Opus interasile brass pieces 16th century (3 pins & 1 necklace)

y deepest gratitude to all of the people who volunteer to help make this competition run as smoothly as it does. This year's pent was particularly hard for me on a personal level as it came just a few months after losing my mother in a car accident. I don't believe I could even have attempted it if I hadn't had a good autocrat who kept me up to date on things and a cadre of key players to cover the many different aspects of the competition. Thorkatla Ulfsdottir and Angharad Rhos ferch Rhain have number crunching almost completely down to a science at this point; Rowan deftly greets and "herds" entrants helping them find their places and fill in their forms; Mistress Brid nic Shearlais generously answers questions on good judging practices; and Dutchess Katherine Stanhope (along with Edward MacGuyver this year) has penned so many entrant and category names onto so many scrolls she created that she could probably do it blindfolded with gloves on. In addition to these mainstays of the competition there are the myriads of volunteers who come and fill in wherever they are needed. Once again my deepest gratitude to all of the above (both entrants and volunteers) for helping me keep Northern Lights up and running.

n that note - NORTHERN LIGHTS XV (15) is coming. We are hoping to have a big turn-out for this hallmark anniversary. There is also now a functional web site at www.scanorthernlights.org (my eternal thanks to Alaxandr MacLochLoinn for making this happen). In addition contact information for more information about Master Henry MacQueen's Challenge for NL 15 can be found at Master Henry's site www.thescholarsgarret.com/northernshores/henry.html

Entrants who wish to get their judging sheets (including some previous years' forms) can send a SASE with a note including your medieval name to Maggie Allen, 393 Church Rd #2W, Albany, NY 12203. You may also contact me at maggiea@empireone.net or (518) 464-6710 if you have any questions about Northern Lights past or present. Also, please let me know if you have any photos of past Northern Lights (particularly photographs of winning entries although all entries are welcomed). Entrants may also take pictures of themselves and their items together, please contact me for submissions.